Gunbuster: Noriko launches in the Gunbuster for the first time. I still rewatch this scene from time to time, and I can get emotional just from hearing the OST from this series. It's one of my favorite anime ever.
Aku no Hana: Kasuga breaks down in the rain, admits he's a fraud, there's nothing special about him, he was only pretending to like reading because he thought it would make him seem smart and seem unique compared to the other kids in his class. I think a lot of people don't really understand this series but for me, if you understand this scene, I think you have an idea of what this story is truly about.
Futari wa PreCure: Nagisa gets separated from Honoka, and fight two of the strongest enemy generals by herself without the ability to refresh her transformation or power source, or use any of her strongest attacks. This one is thematically very powerful because the strength of the PreCure comes from their bond with each other, but Nagisa shows her determination as well as the true strength of their bond. Even if they are apart, she will fight to reunite with Honoka again, and bring Honoka back from the darkness. This episode alone made me a fan of the PreCure franchise for life, and is one of the big reasons why the original series is still my favorite after over a decade of sequels.
Cool idea for a topic.
Also since I read a lot of manga, here are some manga ones.
Fraction: Kago reveals the solution to the mystery, showing evidence that was hidden outside of the manga panels for the entire time you've been reading. Really clever use of the story telling medium as a part of the story itself.
Gantz: Kurono survives the dinosaur mission after being teleported into the hunt without his suit, and without any of his allies from the previous hunts. Honestly this mission was full of badass moments, but it's pretty amazing how Kurono was able to not only survive, but even help with taking down the final boss, without the use of a gantz suit.
Aku no Hana: Yeah, again. This time in manga form. In the end, Kasuga looks back on his life and I felt like it wasn't meant to be entirely clear if he felt content or regret or a mix of both. He chose a normal life, and he was stuck with the consequences of that choice regardless of how he felt about it. Reading this made me feel a sense of existential dread, like a weird sort of mundane cosmic horror that nothing else has ever made me feel. Going back to the beginning of the story and seeing things from Nakamura's point of view, seeing that she really was never normal, and could probably never be normal, was a great way to end the manga after that revelation.
